Other formats

    TEI XML file   ePub eBook file  

Connect

    mail icontwitter iconBlogspot iconrss icon

White Wings Vol I. Fifty Years Of Sail In The New Zealand Trade, 1850 TO 1900

Days Of Agony

Days Of Agony.

The people in the cutter endured terrible privations, and during five of the nine days they were adrift there was a very high sea knocked up by a strong westerly gale. One of the passengers, telling of the awful experience, wrote:

page 329

"The last we saw of the Blue Jacket was a bright speck on the horizon on the evening of the second day. The third day it was decided to appoint some person to fill the disagreeable duty of serving out the rations, Mr. Williams, chief officer, accepting the responsibility, and fulfilling the task with unflinching courage. . . . . A small silver cup was used for serving out the water, and had marks cut in it to measure the daily allowance—two small tablespoons full. One tin of preserved meat or soup was shared daily among the 39 people in the boat. The biscuit was all spoiled by the sea water. . . . . The most pitiful sight of all was the children vainly crying for a drop of water. To add to our troubles, three of our crew were dying, and one was delirious. On the ninth day a sail was seen bearing down on us, and help came. It proved a difficult task getting us out of the boat, as we had lost the use of our limbs and could not help ourselves. After the rescue we still suffered frightfully, our hands and feet breaking out with large boils and blisters."